Disclaimer: same as previous.

This is PRIVATE's fault for making me wonder about what else could still happen. Though the encouragement from Bobcat Moran and Lonely Light didn't hurt.

(Edited 1/06. As per my new policy, anonymous reviews get answered in my profile.)

The sun slanted low across the hilltop, silhouetting a lone figure seated on a boulder, staring out over the valley below. For a long while all was still except for the wind sighing through the cypresses.

Then the sound of hydraulics heralded the approach of another figure up the steep, rocky ridge, dislodging pebbles to go skittering down the slope. The first figure did not move, even as the second climbed past the sparse grove of twisted trees and came to a halt beside the rock.

There was silence for a few moments, until the new arrival was the first to speak.

"So this is where you've been hiding."

"I'm not hiding. I just…came here to think."

"...You like the view?"

"Tell me, what do you see down there?"

There was a pause. "Brown. Rocks. Bunch of hills on the other side. I guess it's nice if you're into that kind of thing."

The seated figure replied almost dreamily, gaze never wavering. "That used to be all farmland, you know. The valley bottom was one of the most fertile spots in this area. In the spring it looked like a light green mosaic, with stripes and patches of light and dark running up to the hills depending on what was planted. And in the summer it was all gold and green."

"…"

"And then some Maverick scientist had the bright idea that they should hit the humans' food supply in addition to the humans themselves, as if their custom bioengineered plagues weren't killing enough people already. So they whipped up some viruses that would devastate crops and sent some of the Biohazard-class Carriers through all the farming areas with them."

"Including here."

"Oh, yes. But of course they didn't feel like going halfway, so the viruses went after anything in the same genus as an edible plant. All the grasses, the wildflowers, and a lot of the trees. That's why it's mostly bare ground and rock now. Pretty much all that survived were a few of the cypresses up here. Not much can eat evergreens, so they didn't bother targeting them." The information was delivered in a flat, calm voice, barely a hint of bitterness detectable.

There was a pause before the seated figure spoke again.

"You shouldn't be associated with me any more than you are already, you know. The Hunters need to have at least one of their best still fighting."

"Hey, if one is good, two must be better."

"I'm persona non grata everywhere in the world right now and you know it. The Hunters can't afford any more connection with me than they have already."

"Well, I'm none too grata myself ever since Sigma decided to go on all the public newsfeeds and tell everyone that I was the original source of the Maverick Virus."

"…what?"

"Don't act so shocked, you of all people had to have had some idea."

"But how could he get anyone to believe that?"

The standing figure gave a wry chuckle. "Uploading his own full-color, full-sound memory logs helped. They checked out as authentic, and I don't have any memories before waking up in the HQ infirmary, so…" A shrug.

The seated figure contemplated this for a few moments, then let out a short, bitter laugh.

"So we're a matched pair, aren't we? A couple of former saviors who turned out to be responsible for two of the most deadly diseases in humanity's history."

"Oh, by the way, they named that first plague after you, you know."

"You cannot be serious."

"No, it's true."

"…"

"Seriously."

"...and this is supposed to make me feel better?"

There was a space filled by the low wind.

"Well, you can't put genies back in their bottles. Same with diseases. All we can do now is try to make the best of the situation. You know, maybe make up for it a bit. Or at least make sure it's not as bad as it could have been."

"…"

"So. You coming, or what?"

"…You're going to go off and try by yourself whether I come or not, aren't you?"

"Yep."

There was another pause, and then a weary sigh. Then the first figure stood up, turning out to be slightly shorter than the newer arrival.

"I suppose I'd better come. Otherwise you'd probably just charge in with no plan whatsoever and get yourself scrapped."

The second figure's sharper silhouette turned to lead the way back down the ridge, away from the setting sun, voice floating back in the gathering gloom.

"You just keep telling yourself that, blueberry."

"Oh, for the– I've told you so many times not to call me that…!"

"Heh, that's more like it! I swear, pulling you out of your funks is not in my job description. I suck at this philosophy stuff you keep dumping processor cycles on."

"Hey!"

A receding laugh was the only reply as the figure in the lead pelted down the slope.

"Why, you – get back here!"

The sounds of hydraulics and taunts faded away, leaving the barren valley still and silent in the dusk.

Comments much appreciated. Criticism much needed.